Szombierki () is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

Bytom Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian language, Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', ) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capital. It is one ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, located in the southern part of the city.

Szombierki Heat Power Station Szombierki Power Station () is a coal-fired power station in Szombierki district of Bytom, Poland. Operational since 1920, since the 1990s it operates at a limited capacity, and is regarded as a monument due to its architectural values. Its first ...

and

Szombierki Coal Mine Szombierki Coal Mine is a former coal mine in Szombierki, Bytom, Poland. It was created in 1870 from several smaller coal fields. From mid-1990s it began to be closed down. In 2004 its winding tower "Krystyna" (formerly Kaiser Wilhelm) was adde ...

(KWK Szombierki), both recognized as important historical and industrial monuments, are located here. In 2004 the winding tower "Krystyna" of the former coal mine KWK Szombierki and its surroundings was listed as a National Heritage Site. In 2009 the tower and the Power Station were voted as two of the "Seven Architectural Wonders of the

Silesian Voivodeship Silesian Voivodeship ( ) is an administrative province in southern Poland. With over 4.2 million residents and an area of 12,300 square kilometers, it is the second-most populous, and the most-densely populated and most-urbanized region of Poland ...

." In 2013 the Power Station was also recognized as a national heritage site. The village of Szombierki was first mentioned in documents in 1369. In 1768, the first coal mine was established in Szombierki. However, it was closed around 1820. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

held

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

in the settlement. POWs worked as forced labourers in the local coal mine, which formed the E72 subcamp of the Stalag VIII-B/344

prisoner of war camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured as prisoners of war by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, ...

. Szombierki is home to football club

Szombierki Bytom Szombierki Bytom () is a Polish football club from Szombierki district of Bytom. Szombierki currently competes in the V liga Silesia I. Their greatest achievement was winning the Polish championship during the 1979–80 season. Honours ;Domes ...

, established in 1919, Polish champions from

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

. The historic churches of Saint Margaret and of the

Sacred Heart of Jesus The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus () is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus Christ is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devotion to Christ is p ...

are located in the district.

Etymology and other names

Etymology

The origin of the district's name is disputed, some suggest it derived from the name of Fridericus de Schonenburch, a knight who was a witness of the vassalage of Casimir II to the king of

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

, while others point towards "''Schönberg''" (Meaning Beautiful Mountain in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

), a medieval settlement located in the approximate area of Szombierki.

Name of the district in various languages

Former names

Shortly after the Polish communist authorities took over Szombierki, its name was officially changed to "Chruszczów". The origin of the name is unknown and it was changed back in 1985.

Religion

At the turn of the 20th and 19th centuries Szombierki had a population of roughly 3,000 people and the village was subordinate to the Holy Trinity church in

. It was decided that a church was to be built in Szombierki and the construction began in 1902. It was designed by Wilhelm Wieczorek and funded by the

Schaffgotsch The Schaffgotsch family is an old and influential Silesian nobility which dates back to the thirteenth century. Some of its members played important roles in the public life of Bohemia, then Habsburg monarchy and later Prussia. History Around 124 ...

. In 1904 the

Church of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus in Szombierki The Church of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus in Szombierki ( Polish: ''Kościół Najświętszego Serca Pana Jezusa w Szombierkach'', ''Parafia Najświętszego Serca Pana Jezusa''), commonly referred to as simply the "Church of the Most Sacred H ...

was completed and it was consecrated on 20 June 1905.

List of churches in Szombierki

Notable people

* Johannes Schweter (born 1901), German

NSDAP The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor, the German Workers ...

politician * Carl-Heinz Stephan (1904-1989), German mining manager * Wiktor Maks, Pole, President and co-founder of TS Poniatowski (now Szombierki Bytom)

Gallery

File:Bytom Szombierki - Kopalnia Szombierki.jpg, Winding towers Krystyna (right) and Ewa File:Bytom - widok kościoła p.w. Św. Małgorzaty - panoramio (5).jpg, Saint Margaret Church File:Bytom Szombierki Skarpa hala.jpg, City Sports Hall (''Miejska Hala Sportowa'') File:Bytom Szombierki town hall.jpg, Former Szombierki town hall

References

{{reflist Neighbourhoods in Silesian Voivodeship Bytom